Top 3 things that annoy your vet

Dr. Greg Magnusson, Carmel vet and owner of Leo’s Pet Care Carmel veterinary clinic, shares his top 3 easily solved pet parent peeves.The Top 3 Things that annoy your vet:

#3) When humans are matched to an inappropriate pet.

It always seems like such a good idea to buy an animal off some sketchy “breeder” on Craigslist, until you show up and the place is trashed and you feel guilty for all the poor animals living in their own filth and then have to convince yourself that you’re “rescuing” a puppy from a horrible situation, when in reality, all you’re doing is rewarding a horrible human being and enabling them to keep doing it by providing them money.

Or worse, you do some basic internet research and convince yourself that a particular breed is perfect for you. This is essentially the same as concluding that every single person named “Forner” living in Indiana will behave the same, develop physically the same, and have the same learning habits. It’s ludicrous. I mean, I’m nothing like my sister, or even my mother and father for that matter.

Please, go to Indy Humane instead, and rescue an adult pet (or a puppy, or a kitten) that has been personality tested, and use their professional human-pet matching skills to help you find the perfect pet for your lifestyle.

#2) Parasites.

Dogs and cats get fleas, heartworms, and intestinal parasites. This isn’t news.

FLEAS: Frontline and Advantage had long since revolutionized the flea powder and Hartz-dominated topical flea market by the time I graduated 15 years ago, and there have been generation upon generation of newer and better flea killing drugs since then. Even Frontline and Advantage don’t work great anymore, Hartz never worked, and no, there is no such thing as a cheap store brand that works. Please, buy your flea stuff from your veterinarian.

HEARTWORMS: Live in the heart. Therefore, because any drug used to prevent heartworms by definition must enter the blood, to kill the worms, only FDA Regulated Prescription Heartworm Preventives treat heartworms. Which means, there is no such thing as an over the counter heartworm preventive. Doesn’t exist, never has, never will. Please, buy your heartworm stuff from your veterinarian.

INTESTINAL PARASITES: Are NOT the same thing as heartworms. No, you don’t need to deworm your pet every month with OTC dewormer, because when you listened to me 30 seconds ago and bought your pet’s heartworm stuff from your veterinarian, you learned that every heartworm preventive ever made also has intestinal parasite stuff in it.

ON THE OTHER HAND: Every heartworm pill has DIFFERENT intestinal parasite stuff in it, which means a) you need to talk to your veterinarian about exactly which parasites your pet is exposed to, and b) you need to have your veterinarian check your dog’s poop (and your outdoor cat’s poop if you have an indoor/outdoor cat) on a regular basis. Please, bring a poop sample to your veterinarian at least once a year.

#1) Getting veterinary advice from non-veterinary professionals.

I get it, you put your faith in your breeder, that they knew what they were doing, in the same way that you put your faith in the OB/GYN who was delivering your baby. I completely understand why humans rationalize that breeders might have at least a cursory knowledge of medicine.

On the other hand, do you keep taking your new baby to the OB/GYN? No, you find a pediatrician. In the same way, it’s wrong to keep asking your breeder anything even remotely medical, including how to feed, water, and care for your new baby dog or cat, once you’ve left the doggie delivery room. Please, take your puppy or kitten to the veterinarian immediately, and forget everything the breeder told you on the way out the door.

Also, never trust the sales man at the pet store to tell you which is the healthiest dog food. What exactly do you think is the salesman’s motivation for that recommendation? Years and years of nutritional study, reading scientific papers, critically evaluating feeding trials? Hell no, he’s going to sell you whatever bag of food his manager tells him to push.

Please, get your medical advice from your veterinarian.

For more information or to contact Dr. Magnusson check out the Leo’s Pet Care Carmel veterinary clinic website at www.leospetcare.com/carmel, on Facebook at facebook.com/leospetcarecarmel, or call Leo’s Pet Care (317) 207-4044